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Where does savage AF come from?

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Savage AF brings together two slang terms. The first is savage, which has meant “brutal” or “aggressive” since the 1500s. Since at least the 1990s, savage has also been slang for “excellent” (à la fierce or wicked). Ithas especially come to describe a remark as hilariously but ruthlessly on point.

The second is AF, often lowercased as af and standing for as fuck. As fuck is an intensifying phrase used since the late 1970s. It’s been abbreviated, and mildly censored, as AF in text messages and on social media since the late 2000s.

Together, savage AF have been doubling down on the intensity since at least 2009, when savage AF debuts on Twitter. Early uses of savage AF describe something as extremely good, a use that continued into the 2010s.

In the mid-2010s, though, savage AF particularly spread as a way to characterize observations, jokes, insults, and comebacks, the kind that make you put a fist to your mouth … “Oh, no he didn’t!”

In this way, savage AF is a response to a clapback or mic drop—that sizzling species of burns that inspires true awe. The slang initially sized up genuine disses, such as a rap battle barb or a Taylor Swift snipe, but the internet quickly appropriated it for more light-hearted humor and commentary.